"For the finale this year, I was floored that they would allow me to have that platform," he told MTV News. "There's so many great artists out there that could have had that moment. The fact that they had me come back and perform 'Permanent,' something that was important to me, the charity and everything, to continue to give me that platform [was great]."

He does admit that although he was grateful for the chance to sing the song and bring attention to his charity, Accelerate Brain Trust Cure, he did hope that when he went out there, he wouldn't get too emotional and cry in front of everyone. "I was kind of half-joking with everyone beforehand that I always seem to cry at 'Idol,' " he said. "I really didn't want to with this last performance."

Luckily, the show offered him some eye candy (and some old friends) to keep him from tearing up. "It was difficult, but I just remember looking around the room and seeing, like, Cameron Diaz over here and Heather Locklear over here and the four judges in the front and just thinking it's such an oddly absurd moment, and I was here a year ago," he said. "To have those, for lack of a better way to phrase it, distractions, it was just like, 'Where in the world am I at right now?' It kind of helped me get through it."